Local News
City of Kenora says it is not interested in subdividing Town Island; will sell to only one purchaser
By BERNIE BELLAN
A story that we have been following closely has taken an interesting twist. In the case of the looming sale of that portion of Town Island which is not already owned by BB Camp, the City of Kenora has clarified that if the rest of Town Island is sold, it will not be sold to more than one purchaser.
In a news story reported in Kenora Online on December 20, it was reported that City of Kenora Manager of Development Services Adam Smith said that, if the island were to be sold, it “will be sold as a whole (emphasis mine), with the exception of the B’nai Brith Camp property which won’t be affected.
“ ‘I think there might be some misinformation in relation to us proceeding with subdividing the island. We will be selling it in its entirety, at least the part of the island that we own. If a purchaser did come in and wanted to divide the island, there is a process they would have to follow through the ministry of municipal affairs and housing,”
“ ‘I think people may be perceiving that once it is acquired, or purchased through say a private party, right away they would immediately be able to commence with development. There is further due diligence, especially through en environmental perspective that would have to be completed,’ he said.”
However, in the original Expressions of Interest/Request for Proposals that the City of Kenora posted in September, the wording of the EOI/RFP said Kenora would… sell the lands to an interested party who is prepared to immediately undertake an appropriate development (emphasis ours) that complies with all relevant regulations and procedures.”
We asked Adam Smith to clarify the apparent contradiction between indicating that a purchaser would be expected to undertake “an immediate development” and the story that appeared in Kenora Online on December 20.
Smith responded: “That has been a standard line in our EOI ads and has since been removed. It is more reflective of properties within town for which we would like to see a project move ahead right away.”
As well, the Canadian Jewish News has also reported on the story. In a December 30 story written by Paul Lungen, it is reported that Kenora Mayor Dan Reynard said that “there’s nothing in the city’s request for proposal that requires the island be turned over to developers. The city is open to receiving bids from stakeholders who wish to retain the island in its undeveloped state.“
The CJN story also noted that following an October meeting with the “Friends of Town Island”, the City of Kenora had “agreed to extend the deadline for bids until the end of January, to give the stakeholders more time to look into a bid.” (In our story in the December 25 issue, we merely noted that the deadline for receipt of proposals was January. We were not aware that the deadline was the “end of January”.)
In an email dated December 31, however, City of Kenora Manager of Development Services Adam Smith would not confirm whether any proposals for the purchase of Town Island had been received yet.
I did ask Smith though whether the City of Kenora had received an offer from BB Camp to purchase the rest of Town Island in 2014, which is when the camp purchased 30 acres of the island. He responded that he did “not have any knowledge of offers to purchase the rest of the island in 2014.”
Yet, in a CBC story about the proposed sale of Town Island it was reported that, according to Aaron London, “BB Camp has inquired about buying the rest of the island in the past, but camp officials were told it would be transferred to a public trust.”
In a subsequent email to me London did confirm that there had been discussions involving a member of the City of Kenora’s administration back in 2014 about BB Camp purchasing Town Island in its entirety.
As we also noted in the story that we published in our December 25 issue, moreover, according to a 2014 story in Kenora Online, a spokesperson for the City Council of Kenora had said that “they (the city council) are committed to preserving Town Island in its current natural state and protecting the fishery and natural habitats on and around the island.”
However, in the intervening years between 2014 – when the sale of Town Island was averted and BB Camp was able to purchase 30 acres of Town Island (leaving 156 acres still owned by the City of Kenora) – and the present day, the City of Kenora has found itself subject to much increased social and financial pressures due to a variety of factors.
In a report issued by the Ontario Human Rights Commission in September 2019 which was titled “Report and recommendations on homelessness in Kenora”, it was noted, among other findings, that “Kenora is facing an immediate homelessness and drug addiction crisis which has a disproportionate impact on First Nations people who live in the city. (It’s a crisis where loss of life is foreseeable). The immediate crisis is related to:
o the forced displacement of vulnerable people, including people with addictions and mental health disabilities, who had been living in a substandard low-rise apartment building (Lila’s Place), coupled with fires that demolished two other low-income apartments in recent years
o the recent arrival of methamphetamine (“crystal meth”) from Winnipeg and associated health and safety-related issues
o the closure of other emergency shelter services at the Fellowship Centre due to lack of sustainable funding.
In the CJN story, Kenora Mayor Dan Reynard noted his frustration with the Province of Ontario and the province’s unwillingness to become involved in helping to provide a solution to the Town Island situation. According to the CJN story, Mayor Reynard said “talks with the province went on for years, ‘but it just seemed to get bogged down in the system.’ In the meantime, ‘we’ve got this asset and a big infrastructure deficit within the community,’ he said.”
The 2019 budget passed by the City of Kenora included a major increase in expenditures for policing. As Mayor Reynard explained in a story reported in Kenora Online in March 2019 “$650,000 of the $900,000 in tax increases approved weren’t within council’s control, including more than $400,000 related to an increase in policing costs.
“The increase is connected with a rise in calls for service, the mayor said. The OPP have said the increase in calls for service is related to the introduction of crystal meth, and there has been a related increase in petty thefts – including break-ins – officers say is associated with the drug.”
Thus, while many readers are no doubt concerned that Town Island’s future may be in jeopardy, it is important to be aware of the many factors that have led to this current situation, especially the much increased difficulties in which the City of Kenora finds itself.
Local News
Jewish Child and Family Service helped over 1800 families in 2025
By BERNIE BELLAN Jewish Child and Family Service will be entering the 75th year of its existence in 2027.
With a budget over $4,300,000, JCFS is also the largest beneficiary of funding from the Jewish Federation of the 12 Winnipeg Jewish community agencies that are beneficiaries of the Federation. (To see a list of the 12 agencies go to Funding for Beneficiary Agencies.)
Its impact has grown over the years as JCFS has expanded its horizon, continually adding to the many services it provides. During the JCFS’s Annual General Meeting, held in the Seniors’ Lounge of the Asper Campus on Tuesday evening, June 23, the important role that JCFS plays in the lives of so many members of the Jewish community – also a significant number of non-Jews as well, various speakers cited the many ways in which JCFS has continued to have such a huge impact.
With total revenues of $4,325,160 in fiscal year 2025 (which ended March 31, 2026), but slightly fewer expenses, JCFS not only delivered a wide gamut of services, it managed to deliver those services without incurring a deficit in 2025, despite some significant financial challenges.
As outgoing Board Chair Elana Grinshteyn observed, JCFS had to navigate some major reductions in funding, including a cut in funding from the federal government to the tune of $100,000, plus the loss of funding from the Claims Conference, which had provided support for Holocaust survivors.
Yet, despite those setbacks in funding, Grinshtein reported, “Together, we insured that services remained intact.
“We increased access to interest free loans,” she noted, “doubling” the amount that had been allocated in 2024.
And, amidst the ever-increasing demand for services, “JCFS has continued to navigate space limitations,” Grinshteyn noted. (I should note that as far back as 2019 I reported in an interview I had conducted with JCFS CEO Al Benarroch about the JCFS’s dire need for more space. Here is an excerpt from what Benarroch had to say about the JCFS’s need for more room back in 2019: “…we’ve been looking for roughly 3,000 more square feet of space. We have a footprint right now of roughly 5,000 square feet for over 40 staff. We’ve given up a board room here. It’s been taken over by older adult service staff. We have a conference room which is adjacent to the board room; we’ve moved two staff in there.
“Yesterday I gave up my office for the entire morning so that staff could interview clients.
“We need to relieve the pressure we’re facing right now – yet alone plan for expanding and growing.
“Whatever space we’d be looking at would be temporary. It’s now 22 years that we’ve been in this facility. The campus has taken over squash courts, it’s taken over a museum – internally, to accommodate the growth in services. Maybe it’s time now to look at growing outside this building…”
As the saying goes: “Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose.” (That’s me, trying to impress.)
While I tried to take notes during Al Benarroch’s CEO report, I realized following his remarks that there was so much important information conveyed, also a slew of statistics, that it might be more helpful to reprint a good portion of what he said verbatim, so I asked Al to send me a copy of his remarks. (That’s one of the nice things about writing on a website. There’s an infinite amount of room to print the kind of stuff that nerds like me pretend to read.)
During his CEO’s report, Benarroch enumerated the many challenges JCFS encountered in 2025.
Among those challenges, Benarroch noted, were:
• The rising and high cost of living
• Food insecurity
• Housing issues
• Our aging population demographics
• The complex needs of our newcomer families
• The increasingly complex needs in mental health & youth mental health
Yet, despite all those challenges, Benarroch said, “As always… we rose to meet those head on, and with the support of our community.”
In particular, Benarroch cited the support of the Jewish Federation, which contributed $948,800 to JCFS in 2025. (The largest portion of JCFS funding, by the way came from the Province: over $1,100,000.)
Fundraising also played a significant role in contributing to JCFS revenues, with almost $700,000 raised through that route, including direct donations of over $320,000 and bequests over $40,000.
As Benarroch noted, “Every year, we look forward with hope that it will be a quiet year.
“Well, if that’s the case, we are in the wrong business.
“We happen to be in the reflect, respond and pivot business.
“This is the nature of the human existence.”
Benarroch went on to add some more statistics about how JCFS played such a pivotal role in the lives of so many people. In 2025 JCFS:
• Served 1,800 client households – impacting almost 5,000 people.
• Assisted 15 foster children.
• Served 70 families in Child Welfare….
“But what is even more important is that we assisted 90 children that remained at home with their families,” Benarroch said.
The year 2025 also saw the inauguration of what is known as the “Asper Empowerment Program”, through which:
• 311 clients were assisted (including Passover Assistance)
• $80,000 was disbursed in financial assistance
• Over $20,000 was given out in interest-free loans.
• 6,500 kg of food were disbursed
In the area of mental health and counselling services, Benarroch noted that JCFS:
• Supported over 50 adults with mental health challenges
• Our Friday Mental Health Wellness Group participants took part in 22 group activities or outings
• We support some 20 individuals and families impacted by addictions through individual and group services.
• We delivered almost 1,100 counselling sessions, over half of which were subsidized on our sliding scale.
• We continued to support individuals, families, and partner Jewish organizations with the ongoing emotional impacts of the war in Israel and high levels of global antisemitism.
In the area of support for older adults, JCFS served over 250 seniors including:
• 70 newcomer seniors
• 50 seniors living with mental health differences
• 65 Holocaust Survivors (including celebrating “25 years of our Holocaust Survivor Drop-in Group, a partnership with the Gwen Secter Creative Living Centre.”)
In the area of settlement services, JCFS:
• Welcomed almost 80 new families
• Almost 50 families from Israel, seeking reprieve from the ongoing stresses and pressures of the war.
Benarroch noted that “These families are dealing with the deep trauma of displacement, having lived under constant stress, fear and the ensuing post-traumatic impact, family and parenting challenges as a result, emotional exhaustion, financial strain, and more.
“Thanks to the Jewish Foundation of Manitoba, we hired a trained specialized support worker, with a background in therapy, to help these families cope, adjust, and receive much needed emotional supports.”
Benarroch went on to describe many more initiatives in which JCFS was engaged in 2025, but I want to return to the retirement of Elena Grinshteyn from the Board of JCFS after nine years serving on the Board, including the last two as Chair. Grinshteyn will be succeed by Bradley Abells, who has been on the Board since 2021. In his remarks, Abells noted that he is an actuary at Canada Life and that he first joined the Board when his particular expertise as an actuary proved extremely helpful in helping to solve a problem that had arisen, and he found the experience so rewarding he decided to remain on the Board ever since .
Also on the Board is Michael Schacter, who is returning as Treasurer and who looks the way you’d expect a finance guy to look.
Local News
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Local News
Jewish Foundation’s asset base surpasses $200 million for first time
By BERNIE BELLAN The Jewish Foundation of Manitoba continues to show stellar growth – having achieved total assets over $200 million in the 2025 fiscal year (a 7.4% increase from the 2024 fiscal year), also having distributed $8.2 million in grants during the year.
Those were among the highlights reported at the JFM’s Annual General Meeting, held Wednesday evening July 18, in the multipurpose room of the Asper Campus.
JFM CEO John Diamond noted that one of the most successful aspects of the year just past was the launch of what is known as “Fund Match II” which, he explained, is “building on the success of the original FundMatch project introduced in 2012.”
Under the terms of the new Fund Match program 18 initial organizations that created endowments with a combined value of $689,388 at the JFM benefitted from matching funds of $178,000 that were added to those endowments, with an additional four other organizations having joined in the program during the course of the year.
Other highlights (which can all be perused in the JFM’s annual report, available simply by going to the JFM website) include the JFM having “awarded 72 scholarships and academic awards totalling $230,759.”
JFM Board treasurer Bruce Caplan also spoke of some other notable achievements of the JFM in 2025, including a 12.64% return on investments and $4.27 million in new contributions.
The AGM also saw a number of changes to the composition of the board. Most notable among them is the retirement of Dan Blankstein as Board Chair – after having served two two-year terms, to be succeeded by Dafna Shore.
Also, the current longest-serving member of the board, Bonnie Cham, is retiring from the board after having served on it for 13 years, including three terms as Chair.
One other significant retirement announced at the AGM was that of Chief Financial Officer Ian Barnes – who will be retiring in December after 26 years as CFO During his remarks to the audience Barnes noted that “When I arrived at the Foundation, the assets were $29 million.” As noted, that figure has now grown to $200 million.
He also noted that “Since the Foundation was established in 1964, total grants and
distributions are $113.6 million.”
Barnes paid tribute to the three Chief Executive Officers with whom he worked: David Cohen, Marsha Cowan, and John Diamond. With regard to Marsha Cowan, Barnes said that “Marsha taught me about business – and how to dress!” (Barnes will be succeeded as CFO by Lynda Joyal.)
One of the annual customs of the JFM AGM is to thank the JFM staff – and to announce how many years each staff member has served at the JFM. While there are a number of individuals who have been with the JFM for a fairly long time, no one comes close to Patti Boorman, Director of Administration, who has been with the JFM for 37 years.
Among the largest new grants given by the JFM in 2025 were: a grant of $122,000 to the Asper Jewish Community Campus, Gray Academy of Jewish Education and Rady JCC to support the construction of a “new accessible outdoor play structure, ensuring safe, inclusive play for children and families; a grant of $150,000 to the Simkin Centre for the hiring a Volunteer Engagement Specialist – a three-year project to modernize volunteer programs and enhance resident, family, and intergenerational involvement.
Among the leading recipients of distributions from donor-recommend endowment funds – all of which had received grants in the past were:
The Jewish Heritage Centre of Western Canada $149,618
Rady JCC 154,746
Gray Academy 168,535
Canadian Associates of Ben-Gurion University 163,488
Jewish Child & Family Service 447,471
Simkin Centre 858,654
Asper Campus 431,099
Combined Jewish Appeal 907,688
Jewish Federation of Winnipeg 531,076
Note: A number of the above organizations also received community impact grants – which are one-time grants given for special purposes.
